Somalia bans ports operator DP World from Somaliland

Somalia denied DP World permission to operate in Somaliland on the grounds that a contract the company had signed in 2017 with the semi-autonomous region was null and void.

Dubai-based DP World agreed in 2016 to develop an economic zone in the self-declared state, pledging to invest $442 million, until Somalia’s parliament passed a unanimous ruling banning the company from Somaliland last week.

Somaliland’s parliament said the move was “belligerent and illegal,” restating support for a tripartite deal between DP World, Somaliland, and Ethiopia. The government warned that the move could further destabilise the tumultuous Horn of Africa region.

Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is a self-declared state internationally recognised as an autonomous region of Somalia.

Local media reports suggest it is unclear how Somalia will enforce the ban, given the breakaway status of Somaliland.

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